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This easy Greek Chicken Orzo Salad with my Greek-inspired herby honey dressing is my go-to summer pasta salad. It’s almost no-cook, comes together quickly, and with very little effort. Grilled pesto balsamic chicken tossed with Greek dressing, orzo pasta, big cubes of feta cheese, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, and herbs. It’s colorful and so delicious. Enjoy this for dinner, serve at your next cookout, and save the leftovers for lunch. It’s always good.

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Memorial Day weekend is almost upon us, and for me, that means summer is here. It’s a time for days spent in the sunshine, nights spent outside, cooking with family and friends, and enjoying simple dinners with fresh summer produce.

Lots of grilling, fresh summer herbs, corn, sweet tomatoes, zucchini, and of course, all the berries and stone fruit too. We have so much to look forward to. For any given summer gathering, you can guarantee that I’ll have a pasta salad on my buffet table. Really yummy, flavorful pasta salads are summertime staples.

So happy to be making these again!

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Today’s recipe is a new one with flavors we know and LOVE. Greek salads are delicious just as they are. Fresh tomatoes, cubes of feta cheese, dill, and a simple dressing. I elevated the classic Greek salad with orzo pasta, grilled pesto chicken, cucumbers, olives, cherry tomatoes, plenty of fresh herbs, and one of my favorite variations on a Greek dressing.

This is such a great make-ahead salad. You can serve it warm or cold, and as a side or as a main. You and your guests will enjoy every bite!

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Greek Dressing Ingredients

  1. extra virgin olive oil
  2. red wine or balsamic vinegar
  3. honey
  4. Dijon mustard
  5. shallots
  6. fresh herbs – dill, basil, oregano, and or thyme

Step 1

How to make my Greek dressing

This is very easy and my secret is to make the dressing directly in the same bowl you toss the salad in. Get a nice big salad bowl, then mix all of the ingredients listed until combined.

Season the dressing to your taste with salt, pepper, and chili flakes.

For the combination of herbs, I love to use fresh basil, dill, oregano, and thyme. You can use your favorite mix or whatever you have in the fridge (or garden). And if you don’t have any fresh herbs swap in dried herbs instead.

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad Ingredients

  1. chicken tenders
  2. basil pesto
  3. balsamic vinegar
  4. dry orzo pasta
  5. feta cheese
  6. cherry tomatoes
  7. Persian cucumbers
  8. kalamata olives
  9. roasted bell peppers
  10. pepperoncini

Step 2

Grill the chicken

Toss the chicken with basil pesto and balsamic vinegar and heat up your grill. Grill each chicken tender until fully cooked through. Once finished cooking, you can chop or shred the chicken to use in the salad.

If you are vegetarian or looking to serve this as more of a side dish. You can omit the chicken from the recipe.

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Step 3

Cook the orzo

Cook the orzo in boiling water, drain, and toss that hot orzo with the dressing in the salad bowl. Do this while the orzo is still steaming hot. Tossing the orzo while hot helps to further develop the flavors of the salad. The heat will activate the fresh herbs and shallots used in the dressing.

It’s going to smell delicious!

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Step 4- assemble

The final step is to assemble the salad. Once the orzo is tossed with the dressing, add all the remaining ingredients, the grilled chicken from above, cubes of feta cheese, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, roasted red peppers, and all those fresh herbs. You can also add some pepperoncini if you enjoy as well.

This salad can be made up to a day in advance. It’s a wonderful dish to entertain with or use as meal prep for busy weekday lunches!

You and your family and friends will really love this fresh salad!

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

Looking for other great pasta salad recipes? Here are some favorites:

Caprese Caesar Pasta Salad

Pesto Chicken, Corn, and Avocado Bacon Pasta Salad

Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Pasta Salad

Grilled Lemon Herb Chicken Avocado Orzo Salad with Honey Mustard Bacon Dressing

Lastly, if you make this Greek Chicken Orzo Salad, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

Greek Chicken Orzo Salad

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 513 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Ingredients

Dressing

Salad

Instructions

  • 1. To make the dressing, combine all ingredients in a large salad bowl.
    2. Toss the chicken with pesto and balsamic vinegar. Set your grill, grill pan, or skillet to medium-high heat. Grill the chicken until cooked through, about 8-10 minutes. Give it a chop.
    3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta to al dente. Drain. Add the hot orzo to the salad bowl full of dressing. Toss, toss! Add the chicken, feta, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, peppers, and pepperoncini. Toss, toss! Serve warm or cold. The salad will develop more flavor as it sits.
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Greek Chicken Orzo Salad | halfbakedharvest.com

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Made this and loved it, halved the recipe because there was only two of us and had plenty of leftovers. Followed the recipe to a T, herbs I used for the dressing were basil, mint and taragon. A staple for summer!

    1. Thanks so much Charlotte!! I appreciate you giving this salad a try, so glad to hear it was a hit! Happy Memorial Day! xT

  2. 5 stars
    Abundance of flavour!!! Thoroughly enjoyed this recipe. Adding to our cottage menu for this summer. A keeper for sure. 👍🏼

    1. Hi Rosemary,
      Happy Memorial Day!!🇺🇸🎆 I am thrilled to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT

  3. If using dried herbs, should I just use 1 tablespoon each of the dill, basil, oregano and thyme?

    1. Hi Melissa,
      I would just use 1 teaspoon of each:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT

  4. Hello! So excited to make this! How long will this keep to use for lunches throughout the week?

    1. Thanks so much Amanda! Sure, you could keep for up to 4 days in the fridge, I would just keep your dressing on the side:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT

  5. 5 stars
    Just made this and it’s delicious!! A perfect MDW meal. I omitted the olives and added some pine nuts.

    1. Hi Leila,
      Happy Memorial Day!!🇺🇸🎆 I am thrilled to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT

  6. It all looks really delicious. I can’t help but question saving the dressing after raw chicken has been marinating in it. If it is still healthy – great. It just goes against what I’ve always believed.

    1. 5 stars
      You don’t use the dressing to marinate the chicken. The meat is tossed in pesto and balsamic. The dressing is a separate component.

    2. Hi Dianna,
      So sorry, not sure what you are referring to here, but there is not marinade that is saved from the chicken:) Please let me know how I can help! xT

  7. Looking forward to making this! Do you have suggestions what to serve this with if made as a side dish?

    1. Hi Christine,
      I typically would serve this as the main dish since it has all the things…protein, carbs, veggies:) If you want to make this as a side dish, I would say it goes well with almost any protein that you enjoy! Let me know if I can help in any other way! xT

  8. Hello! Wondered what you might substitute the chicken for? I’m pescatarian. Love your food and your insta! Love from the UK!

    1. Hi Sonia,
      Shrimp would be a great option to use here or just simply add more veggies of your liking:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT

  9. These recipes sound so good but my husband does not eat grain. I have found grain free pasta that is pretty good (never as good at real) but dont think I can find grain free orzo. Any thoughts?

    thanks

    Carol

    1. Hi Carol,
      Arborio rice would also work well for you! You could easily use something like farro or quinoa too! Please let me know If you have any other questions! xT

  10. Yum! I made the full recipe for just two people. It’s a good thing we both loved it, we’ll be eating it for several meals.

      1. Thanks so much Tracy!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and I appreciate you making it! xT

    1. Hi Shellie,
      Wonderful!! I appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your comment, so glad it was a hit! Happy Memorial Day weekend!🇺🇸

    1. Hi Jen,
      Typically you would need to use half the amount of dried herbs:) But for this recipe, fresh is best! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT

    2. 4 stars
      Hi Jen,
      I made the dressing with dried herbs, I typically use 1 tsp dry for every 1 tbsp of fresh but I went with my gut and decided to just do 1 heaping tsp of each herb listed. Also because I used dry I made my dressing in the am for dinner that evening. I also cut the oil in half because we tend to like on the more acidic side. Turned out really well. I’ll make again later this summer when fresh herbs are more readily available. In fact I think I’ll be making this salad often this summer. 🙂

      1. Thanks so much for sharing Valerie!! So glad to hear this turned out well for you and thanks a bunch for making it! Happy Monday! xT

  11. 5 stars
    I would enjoy this Orzo salad meal with a nice glass of Oolong tea. Thank you for sharing.

  12. For MONTHS now, I cannot find orzo ANYWHERE! Makes me so sad because there are so many orzo recipes that I love and haven’t been able to make! Where do you get yours from!?

    1. Hey Michelle,
      Sorry to hear this!! I get mine at Whole Foods or Kroger, have you tried looking online? Arborio rice would also be a nice option! Let me know if this helps! xT

  13. This sounds delicious and can’t wait to make it! For the roasted red bell peppers, do they need to be fresh or are the jarred peppers ok? I know their texture can be different. Thanks!

    1. Hey Molly,
      You can totally use either one, whatever your preference is:) Let me know if you give this salad a try, I hope you love it! xT